The Windham County reformer. (Battleboro, Vt.) 1876-1897, 1887-04-08


Tell Ii out with joyful voice:
He has burst his three days prison.
Let the whole wide world rejoice! =
Death Is conquered, man Is free, q,
Christ has won the victory.
heard the cheering words, / saw the ex
altation of belief in many faces, but ! coult
not enter into their joy. For me the gray,
hid all. could not see beyond it, | coulC
not even with the eye of imagination pene
trate its gloom.
Going home I wandered through the lone
some house, soon to be dismantled and lef
utterly desolate. The small possessions of my
youth, even some of the toys of my boyhood
were there, put away by loving hands. Wan
dering from room to room the long time
had been absent seemed to be blotted out
myself had returned from the dead to the
scenes Of former life. Truly, had been dead
dead to the light, dead to love, dead to the
best of myself. / was dead and now lived
again. A new life had been born in my soul
was awakening from long sleep. A resur
rection within me had taken place. opened
little polished box in one of the deserted
rooms and there, looking up at me with the
pathos Of human eyes, was the Easter egg
that little Jeanne had given me fifteen year.
before. With start l read again the motto
written in the irregular. childish hand, Glove
lasts forever" All, l had forgotten it.
Worse, had done my best to kill it. had
even let the memory OF this gentle and beauti.
full child soul / had once adored grow dim.
Tears of shame and self abasement ran from
my bursting eyes. The little basket was
shrunken from age; the wax moses that
fastened the great egg within it had crumbled.
picked it up reverently. Looking closely
fboft bo HytioL hod hoo In II,
parts, had been sealed together with wax.
There were still the prints of the dear, clumsy
little fingers long crumbled into dust.
I touched it and the dry wax dropped away
in pieces and the egg opened. There folded
carefully was O tiny letter addressed to me,
"George Blaciwood." Tremblingly l opened
this sealed message from the dead. And this,
in the same uncertain, childish hand, was its
contents:
DEAR BROTHER GEoRoE--I love YOU very
much. j will love you as long as l live and
just the same after am dead, for love lasts
forever. People who die are not dead. They
rise again. You know this, for you told me
out among the graves just yesterday lfyou
die first you will rise again, and will love me in
the new world you rise into, am sure If 1
die first l will do the same, and you must
never forget me, your sister,
"JEANIE BLAcKwooD.'
"Easter, April, 1861"
A voice from the other side had spoken to
nc, surely. held tie precious letter in my
hand and sobbed out my agony like child,
for was u child in humility again.
She "would love me always, for love lasts
forever" The sweet words stabbed my UNI
worthy heart. They will rise again" 1t
must be so, though / had SO long doubted
Yet here were the words of love. Could they
outlast life itse5f-outlast tho soul that
penned them2 In that hour doubt left me
and faith returned. The beautiful child SO
long forgotten lived again. She seemed near
mo- and | wondered how | could have let her
memory fade out as it had done. So real
seemed her presence that felt no more alone.
Together We wandered over the old home.
Together we stood by the two new graves in
the churclyard She brought me faith and
forgiveness, for 10! the dear mother and
father had also risen again, and l felt the
benediction of their love and pardon. "Love
lasts forever" Theirs had outlasted my ne
glect, which was bitterer than DEATH So it
could. then. outlast death itself.
When the sun of that Easter set n resjrrec-
ton had, indeed, taken place. A new heart
was born within me. Jeanie's Easter egg had
brought forth life, the life Of belief, OF hope,
of love- The winds from the wilderness of
doubt blew over my soul no more. A child's
hand a dead child's band had broken the
which bound me to error. 1t
brought me the truth, and was it not said by
the Master that "the truth shall make ye
frees" GERTRUDE GARRISON.